Cupid's Conundrum
by ThreeSimpleWords
Summary: Cupid runs into a problem with his matchmaking system... If he doesn't fix it, Zeus will be very angry. It's an awful summary, but read the story, it's a bit better.


_A/N Hello there! This is my first attempt at a fanfiction. Here I've written my own myth, explaining why some people have dimples (It's a play on Greek Mythology) _

_I really hope you enjoy reading this... I've tried connecting other real Greek Myths to the story, so if you don't understand some of the comments, that's probably why.  
Before you read the story, I'd suggest you be somewhat familier with the Greek Myths (The creation of humans and the story of Cupid and Psyche in particular)._

_If you have read those stories, you should be fine. You will probably even recognize a few of the characters. For those who are unaware, another name for the character "Venus" would be "Aphrodite" (goddess of love)._

This was actually done as an assignment for my english class... Tell me what you think though. ) Sorry for the excruciatingly long authors note, let us move on to the story now... P

**Cupid's Conundrum**

Cupid sat atop Mt. Olympus, gazing down at the humans beneath him. He watched a beautiful woman being lead down a few short steps by an equally handsome man. A ravishing lady smiling happily as her fine new fiancé slipped a ring onto her finger, another gorgeous pair being followed by even more charming children…

He paused; something definitely was not right. Looking a little closer, he spotted a portly man with a hag-like woman hand in hand. He scrunched his nose at the unattractive pair then turned his attention to another.

This time, he spotted a robust woman sitting on a bench with a grungy-looking man. Beside them sat children which, to Cupid's disappointment, resembled their parents very much.

He looked to the attractive family, then back to the not-so-attractive one. Suddenly he jumped up and went to search for Venus.

"Mother? Mother! I need to speak with you." Cupid called.

"What is it, Cupid? Is something wrong?" Venus walked over to her son. "It was not that Psyche girl, was it?" she added with distaste.

Cupid shook his head. "No, no. I have a problem with the humans."

Venus cocked an eyebrow curiously, "The humans? What about them?"

"Well, I am having a problem pairing them up... I have no idea how to match them now."

Venus paused then asked curiously, "What is wrong with how you have always done it? Just pair the beautiful people together, than pair the ugly people together, as usual." She stated in a very matter-of-factly tone.

Cupid shook his head. "I know, it seemed to have been working so well! But as the beautiful people's children have children, and their children have children, the race grows more and more lovely… Their beauty will eventually challenge that of the Gods'.

Venus stared at her son, horrified. "Surely that is not possible?"

Cupid sighed, "I assume it will happen eventually…"

His mother shuddered, "Zeus would be furious if he ever found out… you must find an alternative."

"Yes, I know," Cupid replied impatiently, "but what else could I do?"

His mother pondered this thought for a moment. "You could turn the race hideous. If you stop all lovely people from loving, then all that would be left would be the ugly ones, no?"

Cupid groaned in frustration, "You must remember what happened the last time we tried stopping the race from loving? Even if we were to try and stop just the beautiful half, I am sure the consequence would be just as severe."

Venus pouted, knowing full well what her son was speaking of… The last time the race had lost love, they had stopped coming to pray at her alter. That had been just dreadful for her. "No, that certainly will not do…" she admitted. "What if you tried pairing one ugly person and one beautiful person together? That way they should balance each other out and you will end up with a mediocre race."

"No, definitely not. Psyche would never approve of pairing them for a reason as poor as that… She was even bothered by me pairing the most handsome of men with the most beautiful of women… She said judging by just the appearance was not right. She would be angry if I continued doing such things to her people."

His Mother's expression darkened at the mention of the young woman. "We certainly would not want to upset _her_ now, would we?" she replied sarcastically.

The two argued over ideas for a full two days, never stopping for so much as a breath. They knew if Zeus were to hear of the situation Cupid was placing the Gods in, his fate was as good as Prometheus'. He was basically doing the same thing the old seer had. Once the humans' appearance began hitting high point, they would surely notice. The humans could be very arrogant, and they would certainly begin considering the Gods to be beneath them.

By now their nerves had been warn thin, their patience for each others suggestions limited. The past few hours had been filled with nothing but very desperate, farfetched schemes.

"We will match them through personalities." Venus smiled.

Cupid snorted. "Oh, and I am to read every man and woman's mind until I find the perfect two? That is preposterous!"

His mother continued smiling; she clearly had an idea. "Well, what if you were to find a way to get a quick idea of a human's personality, without needing to stop and talk to them?" she asked slyly.

"What do you mean?" Cupid asked, oblivious to what his mother was suggesting. His mind was running wild trying to make sense of what she was saying.

"We could brand them… Those who are honest, loyal and kind could be given a small mark… while those who are not…" She trailed off thoughtfully.

"Branding? We can not go treating them like cattle! I already told you how Psyche would react to me ill-treating the humans." Cupid gaped at his mother's ridiculous idea. He did not want to hurt the humans. No, he simply wanted to ensure the safety of the Gods' power.

"Oh no, not literally brand them." Venus said, waving her hand carelessly. "No, no… What I meant was to put a little mark. It could be seen easily, but would not be too obvious, nor attract too much attention…"

The two of them went to gaze down at the people, both the beautiful and the ugly. They stood in silence, watching them for a very long time. Cupid smiled as he noticed something.

"The friendly ones are always smiling." He said fondly.

His mother nodded. "If we were to push the corners of their mouths a little deeper when they smiled, we would be able to see their grins a lot easier…"

Cupid's head snapped up, "Yes, and if I were to see two of them, grinning so obviously, I would be able to find the perfect pairs!" He exclaimed excitedly. "And those who do not smile as often could all be matched together as well."

Venus nodded. "You will need to confront Zeus, and question Prometheus on how he created the humans to be sure it works… But it certainly sounds like a plan."

Cupid nodded. He groaned inwardly at the idea of having to tell Zeus about his issue.

_No Matter_, He thought to himself, _I am sure that once I explain my solution, he shall be quite pleased…_ He left his thoughts there, deciding it best to set forward with that small bit of optimism.

Cupid had been explaining his issue to Zeus for quite a while now. He himself was surprised by how long it took to relate all of his problems to the man before him, but Zeus had waited patiently and had listened intently.

"Well Cupid… You are sure that this will work? Deepening the dimples in their faces certainly would not be difficult, but would it really prove to be effective?" The God questioned skeptically.

"Yes, I am sure it would work. I can already see their smiles; the dimples would simply make me feel more positive about my decisions." Cupid answered confidently.

"Very well, then. If you are sure it is your best way to stop these humans from growing too confident, then I permit you to go and push their grins back a little further." Zeus declared.

Cupid smiled triumphantly. From that day on, he had few problems with finding the perfect matches for the humans. All he would need to do was look closely at each human, seeing how far his or her dimples pushed back.


End file.
